Basic Water Rescuer (BWR)
The Basic Water Rescuer course is designed for personnel who may be deployed to a basic (still) water environment, such as lakes, ponds and canals, where they may be required to undertake rescues.
Contact hours
12 hours (2 days)
Prerequisites:
- Must be a confident swimmer
- Minimum age: 18
Course content includes
- Rescue 3 philosophy
- Training standards
- Hydrology and water hazards
- Personal equipment
- Technical and team equipment
- Pre-planning
- Risk assessments
- Incident size-up
- Incident management and site control
- Medical and decontamination considerations
- Considerations for night/poor visibility operations
- Mud, ice and unstable surface considerations
- Communications
- Accidental immersion considerations
- Search considerations
- Water entry and exit
- Shallow water techniques
- Swimming techniques and self-rescue
- Conditional rescues – talk, reach, throw
- True rescues – tethered, untethered
- Rescue platforms, sleds and boards
- Masks, fins and floating rescue devices
- Casualty management
- People and equipment entrapments
- Knots
- Inflated fire hose (if used by agency)
Course standard, learning outcomes and key teaching points
Rescue 3 Europe course standards, learning outcomes and key teaching points
The course standards, learning outcomes and key teaching points are provided as pre- and post-course reference for people involved in the delivery of Rescue 3 courses (eg Rescue 3 training providers, instructors and students). They are not to be used for any other purpose without the express written permission of Rescue 3 Europe.
Qualification valid for:
3 years
Taught by:
- Basic Water Rescue Instructor (BWRI)
- Swiftwater and Flood Rescue First Responder Instructor (SFRI)
- Swiftwater and Flood Rescue Technician Instructor (SRTI)
- Swiftwater and Flood Rescue Technician Advanced – Water Instructor (SRTAWI)
- Swiftwater and Flood Rescue Technician Advanced (Water and Rope) Instructor (SRTAI)
Recertification options
Instructor to student ratios
Student resources
Student resources for Rescue 3 courses can be accessed here.
Instructor resources
Instructor resources for Rescue 3 courses can be accessed here.


